Schumer's In

I was thinking this was going to be a longshot, and for all intents and purposes it might still be.

But the public option and reconciliation movement in the senate has just landed a big fish.

Senator Chuck Schumer has just signed the letter calling on Harry Reid to hold a reconciliation vote on the public option.

Schumer just fired off an email to supporters in which he announced that he’s added his name to the letter, which was initially spearheaded by Senator Michael Bennet and three other Senators. He wrote:

I just added my name to their effort to pass a public option through the reconciliation process, and I wanted you to be the first to know.

This is far from a done deal, but it’s an opportunity to break through the obstructionism Republicans have pushed for the past year.

That brings the total number of Senators calling for this vote to 17. But Schumer’s signature is arguably far more important than many of the others.

That’s because Schumer has now become the first member of the Dem Senate leadership to join this effort. As the former head of the DSCC he played a major role in engineering the Dem takeover of the Senate.

This has gained traction over the last couple of days, and it just might be in no small part caused by the permission the Dems are getting from both the media and public. Look, poll after poll shows at least 3/4 of the country wants the public option. This is a no-brainer.

As much as no-brainers are beyond Democrats' line of cognizance, they're finally catching on. The rest of you - fall in line. If your rep is on board, let them know they done good. Reward them with an email pat on the back.